Suspicions (26 page)

Kyle glanced up at his mother, who smiled
down at him through eyes shimmering with unshed tears. He looked
back at Darcy kneeling in front of him. “I don't know who they
are.”

“That's okay, Kyle,” Darcy assured him. “Did
you see what they looked like?”

He shook his head. “No. They had masks on
whenever I saw them.”

“Okay. Could you tell how many there
were?”

“Mostly it was a man.”

Darcy glanced at one of the detectives who
was taking notes. The detective gave her a small nod to indicate he
was getting it all. A tape recorder sat on the coffee table
recording everything Kyle had to say.

“Was there anyone else besides the man?”

Kyle nodded. “I think there was a lady.”

Darcy gave him a reassuring smile. “Good,
Kyle. Now, do you remember anything about these people? Like the
way their voices sounded or the way they walked or the way they
smelled?”

Kyle's eyes lit up. “The lady smelled like
Aunt Cindy.”

Darcy looked at Amanda questioningly.

“That's Mark's sister.” Amanda glanced over
at Mark, who was sitting on the other side of Kyle.

Darcy turned back to Kyle. “What do you mean,
she smelled like your Aunt? Like the way her clothes smelled or the
perfume she wore?”

Kyle sat up straighter and looked at his mom.
“You know that stuff she's always putting on?”

Amanda nodded.

“The lady smelled like that.”

Darcy looked over at Mark. “Where does your
sister live?”

“She lives back east with our mother,” Mark
said. “She's still in college.”

Amanda spoke up. “She might have left some of
that perfume here the last time she visited.” Amanda stood up.
“I'll go check.” She hesitated, looking at Kyle.

Mark smiled at her. “He'll still be here,
Amanda,” he said, gently.

She smiled faintly and nodded, then turned
and left the room.

Everyone waited in silence as Amanda went up
the stairs to search for the perfume. After several minutes she
came back down carrying a small crystal bottle. She handed it to
Darcy.

She looked it over and noted the absence of a
label. Then she pulled off the stopper and inhaled the scent, then
waved it beneath Kyle's nose. “Is this the smell you remember?”

Kyle breathed in the fragrance and nodded,
suddenly cowering. “That's it.”

Darcy put the stopper back on. “Thank you,
Kyle. You've been a big help.”

He sat up straighter and smiled.

The detectives gathered up their equipment
and left, taking the small bottle of perfume with them.

Day 8 – Monday

“By the way Jason, I have a party tonight.”
They were all sitting around the table eating breakfast, Robby and
Nikki wolfing down their eggs and bacon.

Jason groaned. “I'll be glad when you don't
have to do those parties anymore.”

“Me, too.” She smiled at him. “But it does
help to pay the bills. This is a party Patricia booked for me last
week. She called last night to remind me about it.” Stacey thought
about the call. Patricia had sounded strange. The last time she'd
spoken to her had been the night she had confronted her about
Jason. It was weird the way she was acting so normal now, as if
nothing had happened. It gave Stacey the creeps.

When she stood to clear the dishes, Jason
pulled her down into his lap and nuzzled her neck. She placed her
hands on both sides of his face and lifted his head so they were
eye-to-eye, then she kissed him on the lips. “I love you,
Jason.”

“I love you, too,” he said, his voice husky.
“I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

She gave him a hug, then went into the
kitchen and set the breakfast dishes in the sink. Robby carried his
plate over to the counter and looked at his mom. “I'm glad Kyle's
home now. Do you think he'll be at school today?”

Stacey ruffled his hair. “I don't know,
honey. I think his Mom and Dad want to spend some time alone with
him first.”

Robby nodded.

“Now go brush your teeth. It's almost time to
go.”

“Okay, Mom.” He scampered off to the
bathroom.

After taking Robby and Nikki to school,
Stacey went over to Amanda's to see how things were going. There
were only a handful of reporters in front of their house now and
Stacey ignored their questions as she walked to the front
porch.

Amanda's face radiated happiness. She told
Stacey that Kyle and Mark were both still asleep but Kyle was doing
very well. “What you said was true, Stacey.”

“What was that?”

“That we aren't given more than we can
handle.”

Stacey smiled, grateful Amanda was doing so
well.

“And I have to tell you, I really leaned on
your faith. Sometimes the only thing that kept me going was
remembering you said you believed Kyle would come home safely.”

Amazed to know her words had meant so much to
Amanda, she felt even worse about looking through Mark's personal
papers. Then she thought about Deanna and the unexplained pictures.
She wondered what they meant.

Amanda told Stacey about Kyle's interview
with the police. “They weren't able to learn anything new about who
took him except for one small thing.”

“What was that?” Stacey asked.

“The woman who was involved in the kidnapping
was wearing the same perfume Mark's sister wears. We confirmed it
when Kyle smelled a bottle of the perfume she left here the last
time she visited.”

Stacey wondered if it could be the same
perfume Deanna wore. “Can I smell it?”

Amanda looked disappointed. “The police took
it with them.”

“What was the name of it?”

“I don't know,” Amanda said, embarrassed.
“The label was missing.”

Stacey bit her lip in frustration. “What else
did Kyle tell them?”

“He wasn't able to see their faces.
Apparently they wore masks when they brought him his food.”

“That's too bad.”

Amanda smiled faintly. “I think the police
were discouraged Kyle couldn't tell them more.”

“What did they expect? He's only eight.”

Amanda smiled in agreement.

“How are things with Mark?”

Amanda's face brightened. “Better than
they've been in a while, actually.”

Stacey kept her expression neutral.
“Really?”

“Yes. In fact, he's been staying around home
a lot more these last couple of days.”

“That's great, Amanda,” Stacey hesitated,
then asked. “Do you know someone named Deanna Everett?”

“Yes, of course,” Amanda said, a smile on her
face. “Didn't I tell you that story?”

“No,” Stacey said, shocked that Amanda knew
the woman having an affair with her husband.

“About eight months ago a man called us
saying he was Mark's brother. Mark is adopted, you know.”

“Yes, I think you told me that,” Stacey said,
wondering how Deanna tied in with Mark's long-lost brother.

“Yes, and Kevin, Mark's brother, had been
looking for Mark for quite some time. You can imagine their joy in
finding each other. Kevin is quite a bit older than Mark,” Amanda
said.

“I remember you telling me about his brother
finding him. But I think that’s all you told me.”

Amanda smiled. “Anyway, we spent a lot of
time with Kevin and his daughters, Deanna and Tammy.”

Things were starting to become clear to
Stacey and she was beginning to feel like a complete idiot.

Amanda's smile turned to a frown as she
continued. “Two months after Mark and Kevin met, Kevin was killed
in a car accident.”

“Oh no,” Stacey said, imagining all the
tragedy Amanda and her family had endured recently.

“Poor Deanna was devastated. She had recently
lost her husband in an accident herself, and now her dear father
had passed away.”

Guilt and remorse flooded Stacey as she
thought about the deception she had perpetrated on Deanna. She had
been through so much yet Stacey had treated her like a criminal.
Ashamed at her behavior, Stacey felt tears start.

“She's doing better now,” Amanda said.
“Mark's helped her out a lot. He helped her get a job at the
school, he helped her buy a car, and he sent her and Tammy to
Hawaii.”

That certainly explains everything, Stacey
thought, getting her tears under control. If Deanna's not involved
in Kyle's kidnapping, who is? After being so far off in her
assumptions, Stacey didn't trust herself to guess at who might be
involved. “I'm glad Mark was able to help her so much,” Stacey
said.

“Yes. She's had so many struggles. Even now
she's in San Francisco trying to get things straightened out with
her father's estate. She's cutting her trip short though and she'll
be back this morning.”

“Oh.” Stacey stood. “Hey, I've got to get
going. But I'm so thrilled things are working out for you.”

“Me, too.” Amanda walked her to the door.
“Thanks for coming by and thanks for all you've done to help.”

At Amanda's last comment, guilt engulfed her.
She knew she hadn't done enough to help get Kyle back, but she was
very grateful he was home.

The reporters flung their never-ending
questions at her as she walked back across the street to her house.
Ignoring them, she inwardly smiled at the realization that now that
Kyle was back, the reporters would soon be gone.

As she stepped through her front door, her
smile quickly vanished. She knew she needed to apologize to Deanna
for her incorrect assumptions. Grabbing her purse, Stacey went out
to her car and drove to the nearest flower shop before heading over
to Deanna's apartment.

When Deanna opened the door Stacey felt her
face color.

“What are you doing here?” Deanna asked,
alarmed.

Feeling horrible, Stacey held out the
flowers. “I came to apologize.”

“Oh,” Deanna said, taking the flowers.
“Okay.”

Stacey sighed. “Would if be possible for me
to come in for a minute. I need to explain.”

“Um, I guess so.” Deanna held the door open
for Stacey to enter. “You can sit down if you want.”

“Thank you,” Stacey said, then paused, biting
her lip. “I just want to tell you I'm sorry for lying to you.”

“Lying to me?”

“Please. Let me finish.” When Stacey saw that
Deanna was going to let her continue, Stacey said, “I'm Amanda's
neighbor. I was just trying to help when I was asking you those
questions. I . . . I just wanted to help.”

“I see,” Deanna said. “Does Amanda know what
you did?”

Mortification made the tears start. “No. I
haven't told her. I'm so embarrassed. I feel awful for treating you
the way I did. And after all you've been through. Can you ever
forgive me?”

“We all wanted to help Kyle. No harm done. I
appreciate you telling me the truth now.”

Suffused with remorse, Stacey said, “It
wasn't just Kyle I was concerned about. The FBI thought my husband
was involved with Kyle's kidnapping.”

Deanna recoiled at this. “What did you say
your name was?”

“Stacey. Stacey Hunter.”

“I think you'd better leave.”

“Of course. I'm so sorry.” Stacey left as
quickly as she could, feeling no better than she had when she'd
arrived.

As Stacey drove to the unfamiliar address
that night, she hoped the party would not take too long. She wanted
to hurry home and spend some time with her husband. After she’d
left Deanna’s apartment she’d gone home and tried to focus on
getting ready for this party. Mortified by the look on Deanna’s
face when she told her who she was, now she was afraid to talk to
Amanda, certain her niece would have told her what had
happened.

Pushing thoughts of that aside, Stacey
concentrated on finding the address on the slip of paper Patricia
had given her. Fifteen minutes later she pulled in front of the
house.

She had to knock several times before the
door opened. The woman who answered wore a bathrobe. “You must be
Stacey. I didn’t know your number and I wasn’t able to get a hold
of Patricia, but I’ve come down with the flu or something and I had
to cancel the party. I’m so sorry.”

“That’s okay,” Stacey said.

A few moments later she was headed home,
happy to know she’d be spending the evening with her family.

Spread out on the family room floor, Jason
and the kids played Candyland. The phone interrupted their fun.
Jason went into the kitchen to answer it and was surprised to hear
Patricia on the other end.

She sounded upset. “Jason, is that you? Come
right away. Stacey's been in an accident. She's calling for
you.”

“What? She just left a minute ago.” His mind
whirled in confusion and alarm.

“There's no time to explain.” She told him to
come to an address he had never heard of.

“What's she doing there? Shouldn't she be at
a hospital?” He was more bewildered than ever.

Patricia's words turned to near sobs. “She's
calling for you, Jason. Please hurry.”

Jason was left with a dead phone in his hand.
He didn't understand what was happening but he knew Stacey must be
in trouble. Looking at his children playing on the floor, he
wondered what to do with them.

He called the Stones, but got no answer.

Frustration and stress muddied his thinking.
“Come on kids, we're going for a ride.”

When Stacey walked into her own home she
noticed how eerily quiet it was. The kids shouldn't be in bed yet,
she thought. And it's too dark for them to be outside.

She checked each of the rooms, but couldn't
find them anywhere. An abandoned game sat on the floor of the
family room. Then she noticed a familiar floral scent. Where have I
smelled that before? Foreboding washed over her.

She went out to the garage and saw Jason's
car was not there. Where could they have gone?